


Autumn Leaves

by purbleazaleya



Series: Love as seasons pass [1]
Category: Daft Punk
Genre: Fluff and Smut, Gen, M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-01-22
Updated: 2015-01-22
Packaged: 2018-03-08 15:47:36
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,649
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/3214739
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/purbleazaleya/pseuds/purbleazaleya
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Thomas thinks about the angel-like boy in the garden who takes care of animals and falls in love through letters as the seasons pass by.</p>
            </blockquote>





	Autumn Leaves

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Unexisting_memoru](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Unexisting_memoru/gifts).



> Re-uploaded as a request to keep the stories in the fandom

AUTUMN

Thomas was sitting in the park again, enjoying the view. Or rather, just a particular person. He sighed, the person he so dearly watched was so engrossed with what he was doing that he didn’t even notice Thomas’ persistent stare.

Thomas was the new kid in town, having moved here some time ago because his father got a transfer. He was nervous about going to school, afraid that he may not make many friends as he was too chatty and awkward at times, but to his relieve he found he was unnecessarily fretting. The students in his high school were friendly and they didn’t mind that Thomas talked like a speeding train or that he was in general, a weird giraffe-fy kind of person.

By lunch period on his third day, he had made many new friends and found himself sitting in the cafeteria among a group of new friends. They chatted easily, talking about movies and music like regular teens. That day he also had his first music class.

Thomas really had a knack for music and he had to take something to get enough credits so he’d rather it be music than some boring ancient mythology class. He bustled into the class excitedly and drawing lots of attention to himself as he managed to drop the stack of books he held in his arms, being the clumsy goof he was. That’s when he saw him. There was a boy sitting in the back corner of the class, hunched over a piece of paper on the desk, drawing furiously and steadfastly ignoring everything else.

Everybody else in the class greeted him and introduced themselves but that boy. In fact, the last two rows were completely empty but still he opted to sit at the back of all, far away from everybody else. Thomas could not see his face as his long, soft looking chocolate locks hid his face perfectly. Thomas didn’t think much of it at first, maybe the boy was upset or something.

The class went on smoothly, Thomas made an instant fit into the crowd and the teacher loved him instantly. The moment the teacher left, the boy practically ran out of the class, a plastic bag full of art supplies swinging on his arm, ignoring Thomas even though Thomas was standing near the door. Thomas frowned at that, feeling slightly offended.

He found that he shared two more classes with the boy, Biology and Algebra. In every class, the boy remained so silent and detached he almost didn’t exist. Thomas was surprised when he heard his voice in Biology, surprised that he wasn’t mute, when the teacher asked him to explain something. His voice was deep and smooth, like caramel.

Thomas asked his new friends about this mysterious boy who kept all to himself. “You mean, Guy-Man? He never talks to anyone, so don’t bother”, a boy called Xavier told him. “Yeah, he does not talk to anybody and he has no friends. He comes to school but he’d rather be all alone”, somebody else, Gaspard told him. A third person, Sonny nodded furiously and added, “He looks upset and angry all the time, too. Nobody dares go near him.”

Thomas felt that was sad. Being the adventurous person he was, Thomas set out to explore the local park first thing Saturday morning on his first weekend there. He was delighted to find that the park was large, with a decent jogging track. It was autumn, the leaves were all red and gold and falling gently all around him. He was jogging when he saw something that surprised him, the all mysterious and quiet Guy-Man was there.

Thomas stopped, surprised beyond words. Guy-Man looked like such a bad boy in school that he never expected what he saw. The boy was surrounded by birds and stray cats and dogs, he was petting them and feeding them food. Curious, Thomas hid behind a tree and watched him.

Guy-Man talked to the stray animals, his voice loving and kind as he asked the how their week went. If anybody bullied them. If they were hurt. The one or two animals that were injured he treated with outmost care, as though he didn’t want to cause them anymore pain. He brought a first aid kit, which he used to clean the animal’s wounds so that it didn’t get infected.   

The animals ate and then sat beside him as he took out his art supplies from a plastic bag. He sat and began to draw, occasionally stopping when a new cat or dog came by to feed them. Gone was the air of anger that surrounded him at school, he looked like an angel, calm and serene here.

At noon, Guy-Man left after bidding the animals goodbye and telling them he will be back next week, same spot, same place. The animals actually looked sad to see him go. Thomas jogged back home after that, shocked that Guy-Man was such a kind and gentle person actually.

The next day, he saw Guy-Man bringing his grandmothers to church. He watched them carefully, making sure the frail looking old ladies had a place to sit and that they didn’t fall down anywhere. Thomas’ heart filled with warmth. Guy-Man took really good care of his old grandmothers. Guy-Man also volunteered to read to children at the orphanage, afterwards he played games and sang with them. This he did every Saturday afternoon.

Thus Thomas’ new Saturday routine began. He went out early, hid behind a tree and watched Guy-Man feed and treat injured animals. Guy-Man drew at times, his face scrunched up in concentration as he did his artwork. Then he continued his stalking of Guy-Man at the orphanage.

Thomas was falling more and more in love. Guy-Man had very delicate features and a beautiful voice that Thomas loved to hear. When Guy-Man laughed with the children Thomas felt his whole world light up. One day, the lady in charge at the orphanage approached him, saying that she had noticed Thomas stalking Guy-Man. Thomas had the grace to feel ashamed before using the opportunity to find out more about Guy-Man.

The lady told Thomas that Guy-Man was often bullied at school when he was very young, being painfully shy and artistic in nature. That’s why Guy-Man put up his bad boy attitude at school and ignored everybody. Guy-Man felt that if he just ignored everybody and looked angry all the time, everybody will leave him alone and he won’t be bullied anymore.

How can anybody bully such a sweet and kind person was beyond Thomas. But then, people were often cruel and uncaring, picking on the weak for fun. That’s why Guy-Man helped the stray animals, he felt sorry for them as they were also often bullied by cruel humans and were too helpless to fight back.

The next week, Thomas pinned a note he had written on a red leaf that fell that morning to the tree Guy-Man always sat at. When Guy-Man arrived, he frowned at the note as he read it. Thomas was so nervous, he hoped that the note would cheer Guy-Man up.

_I think that it’s great, what you do. I’m so sorry there are complete idiots who bullied you. You have a great heart and you will always be more awesome a person and a better human being than those scumbags._

_Love,_

_Your self-appointed stalker and admirer._

 He took a breath of relieve when he saw Guy-Man smile to himself before looking around, finding the mysterious person who had left him the note.

Guy-Man took out a pen and scribbled back a reply before pinning the note back to the tree. When it was noon and Guy-Man had left, he hurried over to see what Guy-Man had written there.

_Glad to know somebody thinks that highly of me. I’m sure you have a great heart too. Hope you will come out and meet me soon. I wonder who you are…_

_Love,_

_The person you’re stalking._

Thomas never felt happier in his life.

xxx

Over the next few weeks, Thomas kept on his stalking, but he grew more and more careful, afraid of being caught. Guy-Man always looked around, trying to find who it was who was watching him. Guy-Man looked disappointed when he couldn’t seem to find the person.

A few weeks later, Guy-Man left a note he wrote on a leaf on the tree, same as Thomas did before. Thomas went away at noon, scared that Guy-Man would hide somewhere and watch who took the note. He went to the hot dog cart at the corner and spent quite a while there before casually sauntering back to the tree.

_Just come out and meet me, please. I wanna get to know you._

Thomas ran all the way back home, trying to get rid of the jitters he had. He ran straight in and found his partner-in-crime, his sister, and spilled the whole story. “So what do I do? Do I meet him and ask him out? How if he doesn’t like me?”

His sister rolled her eyes at him before smacking the back of his head. “You fool! He clearly wants to meet you! And you clearly want to ask him out. Just go meet him already, I’m sure he’ll be fine, he asked you to meet him, you know?”

So next week found Thomas sitting by a tree, watching the autumn leaves fall. He caught one and scribbled a note on it for his love. When Guy-Man read it, he looked sad and he sat down looking dejected. The animals seemed to sense he was upset and they came up to him, rubbing themselves against his legs and body to console him. Guy-Man didn’t reply this time.

_You are a perfect angel with a heart of gold. I’m just some normal teen boy, and I love you so much. So much that I’m afraid to come before you, for I am not worthy of having such a kind gentle person by my side._

Thomas’ sister made fun of him every day, calling him a loser and a coward. Thomas couldn’t reply to that. He was being cowardly. He was afraid of rejection, afraid that Guy-Man would not want his love.

He just opted to watch his love at school and at the park as the days grew colder and the last of the autumn leaves fell, leaving the trees bare and no more notes to tell of words of love.

WINTER

The park was closed during winter. Thomas only saw his beloved Guy-Man at school. He yearned to hear that ringing laughter that made his day. Thomas went to the orphanage to stalk Guy-Man but stopped after the lady in charge told him to man up and tell Guy-Man he loved him or she will tell Guy-Man that Thomas was the stalker.

He was too afraid to come clean yet. Instead, he watched his love walk back from school, his nose turning red due to the cold. At time Guy-Man would turn back and see Thomas following him, but Thomas doubted that Guy-Man thought anything of that since they lived a street apart and followed the same route to school anyway.

The whole of winter Thomas longed to see his love as he did before, not him grumpy at school. Thomas dreamt of that smiling face every night, waiting for spring to come so that he could see Guy-Man at the park again.

SPRING

Spring came with a burst of color. The flowers in the park grew and the park was a bright, cheery place. Guy-Man was at the park again, at his favorite tree every Saturday tending to the animals. Thomas, ever the faithful stalker, resumed his favorite hobby.

He got slightly braver though. With no dried leaved to write on, he left lengthy letters in envelopes for Guy-Man at the base of the tree he sat at every week. He watched as Guy-Man read his letters aloud to the animals, a faithful audience ever willing to listen.

He watched Guy-Man’s reaction, delight, surprise, confusion and drank it all in. Guy-Man always brought art supplies there, so he wrote his replies, sometimes with colorful scribbles and left them there for Thomas to find.

They talked about everything except school as Thomas felt that discussing teachers and the classes he attended was too dangerous as he shared four classes with Guy-Man that semester and Guy-Man might figure out who he was. They discussed their favorite music, movies, food and even remarks on what stupid things celebrities did.

They had become sort of friends, writing sarcastic comebacks and passing jokes. Sometimes Guy-Man pleaded with him to come out, he was dying of curiosity to know who Thomas was.

_I feel so comfortable talking to you. I never felt this way about anybody. I’m sure it will be fine, I know you and like you already. I just don’t know your name. How you look doesn’t matter to me. I’m beginning to love you too. I wanna go out with you somewhere._

Still, Thomas remained adamant, afraid out showing himself. At the end of spring, just before summer, Guy-Man sent him an ultimatum.

_This isn’t fair. You know who I am and watch me and I don’t even have a name to the person I have come to love. I am so hurt that you think I will be so judgmental of you. How do I know you are not just playing with me? Like those people who enjoy making fun of other people’s feelings? Either you come out and meet me or stop talking to me all together. You decide._

Thomas’ stomach clenched tightly at that. He cursed his cowardly nature but he sent his reply with a heavy heart. He saw Guy-Man’s face fall as he read Thomas’ reply. Guy-Man sat at the tree and began sobbing.

_Fine. I won’t talk to you anymore. You don’t understand.  I am not worthy of a person as perfect as you. Not in the slightest bit._

Thomas didn’t wait until noon that day. The moment Guy-Man sat down and began sobbing, he turned around and ran as hard as he could. If he stayed, he would’ve run to Guy-Man to wipe away his tears. He hated being the reason Guy-Man cried. He hated being as low as those people that bullied Guy-Man at school all those years ago and hurting his feelings.

SUMMER

The summer holidays came as a shock to Thomas. He stopped going to the park because it hurt so much to see Guy-Man there and not be able to write to him and see his reaction as he read the words Thomas so lovingly wrote for him. He had stopped writing to Guy-Man but he still satisfied his yearning heart by watching his beloved at school.

But now, he could not see his beloved at all. School was closed and Guy-Man’s family sent him and his younger brother Paul to their grandparent’s house in Paris for the summer. Thomas missed Guy-Man with such intensity it hurt. Somewhere in the middle of summer he cried, he cried so hard because he had come to realize one thing.

He was completely and utterly in love with Guy-Man. Every day that went by that he couldn’t see his beloved was torture to him. He cried and cried until his sister got annoyed and threw a pillow at him, asking him to shut up as she was getting depressed with all the crying he was doing.  

He made his decision. This started in autumn and when autumn came again he will meet his love, face to face. He swore to god he will.

AUTUMN

School reopened and his days was filled with falling leaves of red and gold once more, as they did when he first fell in love with his beloved in the park. Guy-Man was there on Saturday, as he always was, feeding the animals.

Thomas prayed to every god he knew that Guy-Man would not shout at him, that Guy-Man would forgive what Thomas did last spring, leaving him hanging like that. The dog Guy-Man was petting raised its head, its tail wagging as Thomas approached.

Guy-Man turned around and saw Thomas and immediately his bad boy attitude from school surfaced. “He-hello”, Thomas stuttered, he felt scared as his beloved was looking pissed off. “What do you want?” Guy-Man deadpanned. Thomas smiled sheepishly, “I want to talk to you, get to know you.”

Guy-Man raised his eyebrow, looking suspicious. “Could have done that at school. I know you, you are one of those loved and popular kid. So don’t bother as I don’t have friends and I don’t need any”, he said before going back to feeding the stray animals.

Thomas took a deep, studying breath. This was the moment. Guy-Man will either go out with him or be mad at him. He sat beside Guy-Man and handed him a leaf with a scribbled note on it, a poem he wrote for Guy-Man.

_The autumn leaves fall as I watched and fell for an angel,_

_The autumn leaves of red and gold where I left words of love,_

_I see your lips; lips as soft as rose petals in spring,_

_I see your hands; the ones I yearn to hold as mine._

_But I was afraid,_

_And I made tears stream from your eyes,_

_You asked me to be close to you,_

_I said we can never be and you went away._

_Summer burned my heart with a searing pain,_

_I yearned for you every day,_

_Cried for my love which I so foolishly hurt,_

_Spent my nights wondering if my love would ever forgive me._

_Autumn comes again as I sit before my beloved,_

_As I beg for his forgiveness,_

_For I am a human not worthy of him,_

_But yet I yearn for him and want him for my own anyway._

Thomas waited with bated breath as Guy-Man read and his expression turned from annoyed, to confused then to surprise. Guy-Man put the leaf down, turning slightly towards Thomas but kept his gaze down.

“So it was you”, Guy-Man whispered, “my stalker whose I fell in love with through the letters he sent. The one which made me feel so hurt last spring I almost felt foolish for thinking somebody out there loved me.” Thomas felt worse than ever, he made his beloved think that he was just playing around.

Guy-Man started playing with his fingers, his cheeks were splotchy and he looked close to tears. “So why have you come back, with some beautiful poetry asking for forgiveness no less. Is it a bet of some kind? Who can melt angry, sulky Guy-Man into a pool of gooey mess?” Guy-Man’s voice was so tiny, Thomas had to strain his ears just to make out what he said.

Thomas shook his head. “No. God no. I fell for you the moment I saw you here, tending to the animals. I followed you everywhere, the church, the orphanage…” Guy-Man looks up in surprise at that, “…I saw all the things you did. You are an incredible human being, you are special, so loving and generous with a heart of gold and I am, what? Some dorky, awkward teenage boy who talked too much.”

“You followed me to all those places?” Guy-Man asked, surprised. Thomas nodded, feeling slightly ashamed of the extent to which he stalked the boy in front of him. “I had to watch you and hear you laugh, I loved seeing you laugh, it made my day. Then I began writing to you and my world was perfect. But when you asked to meet, I just…just…I didn’t dare…”, Thomas paused for a while, looking for the words to describe what he feared, “I was so afraid that you only liked me as what I portrayed myself to be on paper. I was afraid that when you saw who I really was, you would push me away.”

Guy-Man’s eyes widened but he said nothing. Thomas rambled on. “I was so scared oh god, I love you so much that I feared your reaction. The summer holidays was pure hell, I missed you every single day, I longed to see you every day and I cried, oh god, I am so pathetic and my sister teased me the whole summer and oh god I’m rambling again, I do that when I’m nervous, by god am I shaking right now…”

Thomas was cut off when Guy-Man placed the tips of his fingers over Thomas’ mouth, a silent ‘would you just shut up’. Guy-Man looked at Thomas, then flicked his eyes back down. “So tell me what you want. Tell me why you are finally meeting me here.”

Thomas looked at Guy-Man, his cheeks were red and he looked so cute. Feeling determined, Thomas took both of Guy-Man’s hands in his and asked, “Would you go out with me? Like have coffee somewhere? It doesn’t have to be a date if you don’t want it to, but we can just sit and yeah…” Thomas trailed off, jittery all over and dreading Guy-Man’s answer.

Guy-Man bowed his head lower, making his hair fall and hide his face, feeling shy. He squeezed Thomas’ hands before saying, shyly, “Yes. I’ll go out with you. Like on a date.” Thomas could hardly believe his ears. He felt joy cloud his mind, he was ecstatic.

“Oh, thank god!” was all Thomas said before he pulled Guy-Man into his arms, hugging him tightly. Guy-Man smiled in Thomas’ embrace, his face was tomato red by now due to embarrassment.

All around them, the falling autumn leaves and the stray animals watched them, watched two young people as they hugged and laughed merrily, before they walked away together, arms intertwined and happy. 

 


End file.
